Wall mounted bottle opener



APP!l 1960 R. A. WENDLANDT WALL MOUNTED BOTTLE OPENER Filed Feb. 2, 1959 INVENTOR. Rand/d I9. Wand/and! United States Patent WALL MOUNTED BO'I'ILE OPENER Ronald A. Wendlandt, Cincinnati, Ohio, assignor to The l'lfegiililn Can Company, Cincinnati, Ohio, a corporation 0 0 Application February 2, 1959, Serial No. 790,745

4 Claims. (CL 81-33) The present invention relates to improvements in wall mounted can and bottle openers and more especially to an opener construction that is particularly useful as a drop handle for lifting and carrying insulated containers such as picnic coolers, or the like.

An object of this invention is to provide a novel lever mounted element that will puncture the end closure of a tin can when the lever is operated or will remove the crown cap from a bottle or other container when such cap is gripped by the element and the container moved angularly with respect thereto.

Another object of the invention is to provide a simplified, yet durable can and bottle opening element that may be constructed from a single, case hardened stampmg.

A further object of the invention is to provide a cover for an opener construction having the foregoing characteristics which has means thereon co-operative with complemental means on the bracket base for journaling the lever that operates the can and bottle opening element in the bracket.

My opener has a minimum of parts that may all be mass produced at low cost and assembled to provide a reliable and presentable wall mounted container element; this invention consisting of certain novel features of construction and combination of parts hereinafter described and particularly set forth in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of my can and bottle opening device in position to be mounted on a wall, or the like.

Fig. 2 is a section taken on line 22 of Fig. 1 showing the device mounted on a wall.

Fig. 3 is a fragmental section taken on line 3-3 of Fig. 4 showing my device in position to remove a crown cap from a bottle.

Fig. 4 is a section taken on line 44 of Fig. 2.

Referring more particularly to the drawings the numeral 6 is my composite bracket mounted with rivets 7, or the like, to a wall 8 of an insulated picnic cooler or other suitable supporting surface. The wall mounted bracket has a fiat base plate 9, preferably made from an aluminum stamping, said plate having a pair of longitudinally spaced apart ears 10 and 11 projecting at right angles from the plate and disposed in parallel upstanding planes when the bracket is in mounted position on the wall 8. As best shown in Figs. 3 and 4, each of the cars 10 and 11 have identical, circular notches 12 and 13, respectively, formed in its lower, projecting edge for engaging a cylindrical end of a straight portion 14 on a closed, ring-shaped lever or handle member generally indicated in the drawings by the reference numeral 15. The central part of the straight portion 14 is located be tween the cars 10 and 11 and is flattened at 16 (Fig. 2) to provide a co-operative means for mounting my container opener member 17 on the handle.

The container opening member 17 is formed from a single case hardened stamping and consists of a V-shaped 2,933,957 Patented Apr. 26,- 1960 can punching blade 18 projecting laterally from the laterally from the straight portion of the handle and diverging outwardly therefrom with respect to the can punching blade 18. The bar '19 has a crown cap engaging hook 20 formed on its free end which projects from the body of the bar toward the blade 18. The container opening member has a pair of mounting cars 21 and 22 projecting longitudinally from the central portion thereof and which are secured to the flat portion 16 by rivets 23 and 24, respectively. As best shown in Fig. 4 each ear has an outwardly projecting lug 25 which acts to contact the ears 10 and 11 on the base plate to prevent axial displacement of the straight portion 14 of the handle.

A pair of can head engaging lugs 26 and 27 project from the base plate 9 and are disposed somewhat belowand between the ears 10 and 11 on the said plate, the, plate having an elliptically shaped hole 28 formed therethrough at a portion located between the lugs 26 and 27 for normally receiving the outer end of the can punching blade 18.

A cover 29 is fitted over the base plate and preferably molded from a plastic material, said cover having an inwardly directed peripheral flange 30 which overlaps the peripheral edge of the base plate and is in engagement with the supporting wall 8 for the bracket. The cover has a hollow, downwardly opening hood portion 31 provided with an opening 32 which is of a configuration to permit movement of the bar 19 and the blade 18 into and out of the hood when the container opener element is operated by the handle 15. Aligned openings 33 and 34 are formed in the cover 29 and the base plate 9, respectively, through which rivets 7 or other fastening means pass for securing the cover and the base plate to the wall 8.

The straight portion 14 of the lever or handle 15 is journaled in the downwardly opening notches 12 and 13 in the ears 10 and 11, respectively, by the juxtaposition of the cover 29 on the base plate 9. This is accomplished by forming elongated notches 37 and 38, in opposed sides of the cover 29 adjacent the cars 12 and 13, respectively, said notches 37 and 38 extending into the body of the cover at right angles to the downwardly opening circular notches 10 and 11 formed in the ears. Thus in assembly the container opening member 17 its handle 15 may be associated with the base plate by simply entering the handle straight portions 14 in the circular notches in the ears of said base plate and then moving the cover 29 over the base plate into position whereby the notches 37 and 38 will engage said straight portions to hold both the base plate in position and preclude downward movement of the straight portions out of the circular notches in the ears.

When it is desired to open a container such as a tin can 35 with my opener the lever or handle 15 is raised to the position indicated in dotted lines in Fig. 2 whereby it will be noted that the bar 19 is located within the hood 29 whilst the can puncturing blade 18 is raised to a substantially horizontal position above the level of the can supporting lugs 26 and 27. The can 35 is then inserted under the hood in a condition such that the can bead 36 rests upon the can supporting lugs 26 and 27 and the end closure of the can is beneath the blade 18. The handle 15 is then pivoted downwardly from its raised positions to its full line position shown in Fig. 2 whereby the can end is punctured by the blade and a V-shaped opening is formed therein so that the contents of the can may be dispensed. With reference to Fig. 3 a crown capped bottle 37 may be opened with the container opening member 17 by permitting the handle to remain in its suspended position and inserting the crown cap 38 between the bar 19 and the blade 18 in an inclined posilike.

7 V w 3 tion such that the hook 20 is whilst the oppositeside of the cap abuts against the face of the blade 18. By moving the bottle in the direction of the arrow (Fig. *3) the crown cap will be gripped by the barand theblade and held in said position so that it will be removed from the bottle.

- It will, therefore, be understood that I have produced asimple, yet rugged and decorative'contain'er opener that has .three parts readily made and assembled. The co-operative handle journaling means between the notched cars and 11 on the base plate 9 and the notches 37 and 38 in the cover 29 provide a handle journal mounting that is very strong in that all the can opening force is? directed upwardly against the ears 10 and 11 when thedevice is used as a can opener whilst the lifted weight is carried by said ears when the device is utilized as a handle engaged tinder the cap 7 1 that co-operate with the notches in the ears to journal on a portable container such as a picnic cooler, or the Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

'1. A bottle opener comprising a bracket having-a base for attachment to the wall of a cooler, or the like, said bracket base having a pair of spaced apart ears projecting at right angles therefrom, a lever having an angularly disposed straight portion journaled at its ends in the cars,

'a blade mounted on the central part of the straight portion and projecting laterally therefrom, a bar projecting laterally from the central part of the straight portion and diverging outwardly therefrom with respect to the blade, and a crown cap engaging hook formed on the free end of the bar and projecting therefrom toward the blade, said bar and the hook being adapted to co-operate with the blade to grip the crown cap of a bottle.

2. A bottle opener as set forth in claim 1 characterized by'- the fact, that the blade and the bar are constructed from a single piece of material formed to straddle the straight portion, said piece being mounted on the blade by rivets'passed through the piece and the straight portion. I

3. A bottle opener comprising a bracket having a base for attachment to the wall of a cooler, or the like, said bracket base having a pair of spaced apart ears projecting at right angles therefrom, and each having a circular notch formed in a projecting edge thereof and disposed in axial alignment with each other, a closed ring-shaped lever having an angularly disposed straight portion engaged at its ends in the notches in the cars, a blade the ends of the straight portion'of the lever, and fastening means securing together the cover and the bracket base.

4. .A bottle opener comprising a bracket having a fiat base for attachment to the wallet a cooler, or the like, said bracket basehaving a pair of spaced apart, upstanding ears projecting at right angles therefrom, each of said ears having a'circular upwardly extending notch formed in its bottom edge in axial alignment with each other, a

closed, ring-shaped lever having the straight portion engaged at its ends, in the notches of the cars, a blade mounted on the central part of the straight portion and projecting radially therefrom, a bar projecting laterally from the central part of the straight portion and diverg ing outwardly therefrom with respect to the blade, a crown cap engaging hook formed on the'free end of the bar and projecting from the bar toward the blade, said bar and blade being angularly positioned to receive between them a crown cap of a bottle, a cover having'a downwardly openingvblade and bar receiving hood portion, a pair of laterally spaced walls closing the ends of p the hood portion and each positioned outside one of the e'ars'on the ,base, each of said walls having a notch formed in its inner edge extending into theiwall at ,right angles to the notches "in the ears to engage one end of the straight portion of the lever and co-operative with each notch in the ears on the base to form a journal mounting for the lever, and fastening means securing together the cover and the bracket base.

References Cited in thefile of this patent UNITED'STATES PATENTS Hamilton Apr. 21, 1925 Staller Feb. 8, 1955 

